Refuge sets a powerful Sara Teasdale poem by the same name, which perfectly captures the healing power of singing: 'For with my singing I can make a refuge for my spirit's sake, A house of shining words, to be my fragile immortality'. Quartel uses musical structure to complement the poem's narrative, opening and closing with music marked 'resilient and strong', with a central section that is 'warm and hopeful', as expressed by rich harmonies and soaring melodic lines. The piano underpins this expressive setting with steady continuous quaver motion, and provides characterful harmonic moments.